The main character, Det. Charlie Crews, is quirky and funny, both intentionally and otherwise, and he has a dry, sardonic wit that i really enjoy. After his experience of serving more than a decade in jail for a crime he didn't commit, and his abandonment by his partners, both at home and on the job, he strives to overcome bitterness by turning to Buddhism as a means of overcoming it all and seeing things in a more philosophical way. While this aspect of the show is overall quite enjoyable and adds to the overall sense of fun and oddness, it is at times a bit overdone and the point becomes labored, but Charlie is definitely the obsessive-compulsive type, so usually it's fine and it's funny.
The actor playing Det. Crews, Damian Lewis, is very well known in British television and does a great job in this role, at once odd and perfectly normal given what he's been through. As he has done in other roles, Lewis can simultaneously display a range of emotions, and can be as sympathetic or loathsome as the role demands (definitely the former in this case). Also, I am pretty picky about accents, but I am from LA and I would never guess that he wasn't also. The supporting cast is also strong, and their characters are for the most part reasonably well-rounded, especially his sidekick/lawyer/friend/housemate who is humorous in an odd sort of way, as you'd expect from Adam Arkin.
As for the plot, although Crews has received a huge settlement payout for his wrongful imprisonment, he has returned to his former job, now as a detective, unlike his former partner and best friend who is still in uniform. It looks like his main purpose in going back on the job is to figure out who framed him for the murder for which he spent so many years in jail, as you would. It quickly becomes clear that it all centers around a bank robbery where a very large sum of money disappeared, and where many of his fellow officers just happened to be that day on a training exercise. Charlie is easy to like, so I find myself really eager for him to find out what happened, and also to see what the next twists and turns will be as he explores that avenue.
I write this as season 2 has started at last, having been delayed considerably by the writers' strike last year. Although I was looking forward to the return of this show, I felt really disappointed by the first episode of season 2, as I discussed in the comments for that specific episode. I really enjoyed season 1 of this show, so let's hope that, after a faltering start, the second season provides more of the fine writing and acting that distinguished the first.
The actor playing Det. Crews, Damian Lewis, is very well known in British television and does a great job in this role, at once odd and perfectly normal given what he's been through. As he has done in other roles, Lewis can simultaneously display a range of emotions, and can be as sympathetic or loathsome as the role demands (definitely the former in this case). Also, I am pretty picky about accents, but I am from LA and I would never guess that he wasn't also. The supporting cast is also strong, and their characters are for the most part reasonably well-rounded, especially his sidekick/lawyer/friend/housemate who is humorous in an odd sort of way, as you'd expect from Adam Arkin.
As for the plot, although Crews has received a huge settlement payout for his wrongful imprisonment, he has returned to his former job, now as a detective, unlike his former partner and best friend who is still in uniform. It looks like his main purpose in going back on the job is to figure out who framed him for the murder for which he spent so many years in jail, as you would. It quickly becomes clear that it all centers around a bank robbery where a very large sum of money disappeared, and where many of his fellow officers just happened to be that day on a training exercise. Charlie is easy to like, so I find myself really eager for him to find out what happened, and also to see what the next twists and turns will be as he explores that avenue.
I write this as season 2 has started at last, having been delayed considerably by the writers' strike last year. Although I was looking forward to the return of this show, I felt really disappointed by the first episode of season 2, as I discussed in the comments for that specific episode. I really enjoyed season 1 of this show, so let's hope that, after a faltering start, the second season provides more of the fine writing and acting that distinguished the first.
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